David Thiselton

Zac Purton is closing in on the Hong Kong record number of winners held by Douglas Whyte as he clinched a four-timer at Sha Tin on Sunday to make it nine wins from 24 rides this season and 1749 Hong Kong career wins, 64 short of Whyte’s record of 1813.

It looks like more of the same this season with Purton dominating, although Hugh Bowman was making his presence felt last season before injury and had a double on Sunday to get his season going. However, he is already seven wins behind Purton after just three meetings. 

Matthew Poon is in second place on four wins in 18 rides while last season’s runner up Karis Teetan has had the same number of rides as Purton but is yet to record a win.

It could be another uphill battle for the South African riders on the island.

Luke Ferraris started off the season well with a win at each of the first two meetings for the burgeoning ex-pat Australian trainer Mark Newnham. However, of those who have had at least one win this season, and there are 13 of them, he has had the second least number of rides, just 12 rides in three meetings.

It has been even tougher going for Keagan de Melo, who only had one ride on Sunday and has had just fives rides this season with one fourth place being his only cheque. 

Lyle Hewitson is the one SA jockey who is threatening to break through, although the same could have been said at the beginning of last season in which his return of 40 was less than his previous season. Lyle has had 18 rides this season for one win, three seconds, one third, three fourths and a fifth. However, one of the statistics from last season shows the dearth of quality mounts the island’s leading ex-pat South African rider is getting. Of his 616 rides in the season, which was the third most on the log, he only had 14 rides in Graded events, seven Gr 3s, four Gr 2s and three Gr 1s, and none of his mounts in those events were good enough to win with his returns being a Gr 1 4th, two Gr 2 5ths, a Gr 3 2nd, a Gr 3 3^rd and three Gr 3 4ths. 

Compare that to the foreign rider Andrea Atzeni, who had total rides of 595 for 48 wins. Atzeni had 28 rides in Graded events, including ten rides in Gr 1 events, for a winning return of two Gr 3s.

Being in favour on the island relies largely on how lucky a rider is viewed to be and it would appear Hewitson has not cracked it as a lucky big race rider even if he is a popular choice for minor events.

Luke Ferraris only had 416 rides last season and only six were in Graded events.

De Melo had 419 rides and only seven were in Graded events.

The great Piere Strydom has ridden in Hong Kong with success, but soon chucked it in and said he would rather ride in jurisdictions where skill rather than luck was viewed as the best credential.

How long will the South Africans on the island manage to endure the relative lack of support or will things change?

Luke Ferraris’ association with Mark Newnham augurs well. Newnham sent out an excellent 31 wins in his first season last term and he is joint leader on four wins this season. Of Newnham’s 31 wins last season, Ferraris rode 12 of them, so that represented a good proportion of Ferraris’ 28 wins in total last season.

However, the short-priced favourite of Newnham’s that won on Sunday was ridden by Purton. 

Purton can be compared to Richard Fourie out here. It seems apparent that if connections can get him they will do, so with Newnham’s burgeoning profile Purton might muscle in and take the cream. 

Of course the plus side of Hong Kong is the massive stakes and this can set up a jockey and his family for life.

Hewitson’s earnings last season were $76,313,830 (R173,232,394), Ferraris’ were $37,026,775 (R84,050,779) and De Melo’s $39,398,025 (R89,433,517). 

Compare that to the R44,651,019 stakes earnings of Richard Fourie in his record-breaking 2023/2024 season.

So it is tough on one side for the foreign jockeys, but plenty would be willing to take their place given the opportunity.

RACE 1

5 OPERA VERSE made a reasonable local debut after being moderate in Cape Town and with some improvement could be in the shake up from pole position. 3 TARTAN QUEEN has run some moderate places but in this line up from draw two could be involved. 6 ROYAL VENUS was a shorthead in front of Tartan Queen last time but there is now a reversal in draw fortunes. 2 IGNITETHELIGHT was well beaten in two starts on the Highveld but the form of those races was strong. (David Thiselton 3-1-5-2)

RACE 2

3 NIKES RAY OF LIGHT has been knocking hard and is well drawn to finally get off the mark. 1 AND ACTION is a hard knocker too and is well drawn and distance suited. 5 BROOKSIDER was not disgraced last time in Cape Town and could be in the shake up. 2 HAT HOT HAT has the form to earn a cheque. (David Thiselton 3-1-5-2)

RACE 3

1 GIMME’S LASSIE is knocking on the door and should relish this trip from a good draw. 4 ELLORIX proved she is up to this merit rating last time and should be right there from a good draw. 2 MONTELENA has the form to earn. 5 CATCH YOUR BREATH is well drawn and should not be bothered by the step down in trip. (David Thiselton 1-4-2-5)

RACE 4

1 ELUSIVE MATA went close over course and distance last time and has a similarly good draw. 2 ICE CAP has been knocking on the door over 1200m and showed enough over this trip on the Highveld to have a good chance here. 3 BEIJING BOULEVARD is in good form but jockey bookings suggest she is the second string to Ice Cap. 7 GALAXY MOMENT has improved with blinkers and could earn. (David Thiselton 1-2-3-7)

RACE 5

7 SAN QUINTIN went close over 2200m last time when finally landing a draw and he has landed another draw. 4 SLAINTE MHATH has shown twice she relishes this distance category and he only has to overcome a three point raise for his last narrow win. 2 WALT WHITMAN relished the step up to 2200m last time and won well but does have to overcome a four point raise. 3 THE INKOSANA enjoys this trip but has to bounce back from a well below par effort and has a wide draw. (David Thiselton 7-4-2-3)

RACE 6

6 MASKED VIGILANTE is ultra consistent and comes off a fine effort against a decent Cape raider on the turf but he has a tricky draw. 5 EYJAFJALLAJOKULL has always looked to have talent and has hit his straps so can do well again but he does have to overcome a tough draw. 1 STRANGE MAGIC has a good draw and is capable of being involved. 2 COOL WINTER is not reliable but can never be ignored as he is capable and is off only a one point higher mark than his last win. (David Thiselton 6-5-1-2)

RACE 7

9 BENNELONG POINT did well in first time blinkers and has a good draw over the same course and distance. 2 SWISS WALT is course and distance suited and is capable of winning again. 4 CHARLIE MALONE has ability and from a good draw should be in the shake up. 1 PASHTUNWALI is distance suited and always thereabouts but does have a tricky draw. (David Thiselton 9-2-4-1)

RACE 8

6 SI GIOCA is ultra consistent and might relish a step back to this trip. 5 MISS SHAIVI is knocking on the door and is well drawn over an ideal trip. 9 BRETTY is better than her last two runs and is distance suited but she has a tough draw. 2 KABON KAPI is knocking on the door and will be staying on. (David Thiselton 6-5-9-2)

David Thiselton

Two horses and their connections a thousand odd miles apart benefited from the patience of their trainers over the weekend, Dyce at Turffontein and Economics at Leopardstown in Ireland.

The Lucky Houdalakis-trained six-year-old William Longsword gelding Dyce came from off the pace in a Pinnacle Stakes race over 1000m after showing the good cruising speed he is known for under Piere Strydom and he then produced the strong finish he is also known for to win by a comfortable 0,75 lengths despite carrying 62kg.

Dyce was in line to be the Equus Champion Sprinter after winning the Gr 1 World Pool Cape Flying Championship.

However, after two below par runs back on the Highveld and another below par run in the Gr 1 Golden Horse Sprint, Houdalakis decided to back off him and put him away instead of having a tilt at the Gr 1 Mercury Sprint.

He said last week, “He is a sound horse, there is nothing wrong with him, I just think he was run down. When he came back from Cape Town he began to haemoconcentrate, so he was under pressure already. Then we gelded him and he didn’t have time to get over it before going into the Computaform and Scottsville. I sat down with David (Shawe – the owner and breeder) and said he’s had three unplaced runs and there’s no way this horse can run unplaced – it’s impossible – he’s telling us he’s not happy, there’s something wrong, so we just have to back off him. Enough is enough.”

Dyce demonstrated on Saturday he has his zest for racing back, so it was a wise move by the connections to back off him and let him fight for the big prizes this season instead.

He is still lightly raced and in fact his eight career wins, including a Gr 1, a Gr 2, a Gr 3 and a Listed race, have come from only 18 starts.

He should still be able to produce his best, despite being a six-year-old, and an interesting season lies in store.

In the UK the Willam Haggas-trained Economics might well have produced the world’s best performance of the year in winning the Gr 1 Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes. When a horse is caught wide without cover it usually spells doom for his of her chances, but in Economics case he was not only able to overcome such a disadvantage but he also got the better of a great horse like Auguste Rodin in a duel for the line. Economics beat the six-time Group 1 winner by a neck to make it four wins in a row, including two Group 2s and Saturday’s Group 1.

When Economics won one of the Epsom Derby traditional pointer races, the Dante, in highly impressive fashion at York most expected him to appear in the Derby. However, Haggas had withdrawn him from the Derby before that win at York and said, “I didn’t think it was the right track and the right race for him at this stage of his career.” When calls came to supplement him into the Derby for £75,000 he stuck to his guns, saying, “”We want to give him more time, he’s a big lovely, scopey horse. It’s a shame these races come up so quickly and he just needs some more time, that’s my view.”

He was vindicated when Economics won the Group 2 Prix Guillaume d’Ornano over a mile and two furlongs last month, but the bigger vindication came on Saturday.

Economics looks to now have the world at his feet. 

However, Haggas has ruled out a tilt at the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe and is instead set to round off his season in the Qipco Champion Stakes at Ascot. 

Meanwhile in England on Saturday the great Galileo had his last chance to land a British Classic and did so through his Aidan O’Brien-trained son Jan Brueghel, who started 11/4 joint favourite and became Galilo’s 21^st British classic winner. Galileo and O’Brien got the exacta as the other joint favourite Illinois finished a neck second.  Sean Levey rode the winner to give O’Brien his 8^th St. Leger and Galilo his 101^st individual Group 1 winner.

Local Quartet pools with fractional betting on selected UK race meetings will return to the TabGold betting menu from this Thursday following a mixed reception from customers to the introduction of commingled Quartet pools on all UK and Irish race meetings last month.

Such commingled Quartet pools have been welcomed in some quarters, but many TabGold customers have complained that this has resulted in them being unable to play fractional Quartet bets on UK races.

TabGold have taken note of the complaints and from this Thursday 12 September customers can enjoy the best of both worlds. As before local Quartet pools with fractional betting will be offered on two UK meetings most days with commingled Quartet pools on all other UK and Irish meetings.

Whether an Irish or UK meeting has local or commingled pools will be displayed clearly on Tab sheet race cards in store and online.

Unfortunately for several reasons, including vast differences in exchange rates, it is not technically possible to offer fractional bets on pools commingled internationally.

The minimum unit for commingled bets is R1 (more in the case of countries like the USA) and this is itself a fractional bet in international tote pools.

As an example, the unit of a UK Tote Quartet is one Pound and a customer playing a R1-unit Quartet with TabGold on a UK race is buying about 1/24th of the bet, depending on the exchange rate on the day. And if that bet is the only winning ticket, the customer will get 1/24th of the pool and the remainder will be carried over. To get the full UK Tote payout on a commingled Quartet requires playing the bet to a R24 unit.

That aside, the introduction of commingled Quartet bets has given TabGold customers many more opportunities to play Quartets on UK and Irish races, and access to bigger pools and payouts.

David Thiselton

“The Flying Springboks”, as the eleven South Africa horses who departed for the USA in March were dubbed, have started off their campaign over there in fine style with a second place finish for Beach Bomb, giving weight all around in a Black Type event, followed by Isivunguvungu’s magnificent win in the Da Hoss Stakes at Colonial Downs on Saturday.

It is not surprising that SA breeding is standing up to the international test as the bloodstock out here keeps on being bolstered by high quality stock from overseas.

This was illustrated again this weekend.

The Klawervlei Stud-based Twice Over hails from a fine European family and they are having more success at present through the unbeaten colt Ombudsman. 

The John and Thady Gosen-trained Night Of Thunder (Dubawi) colt made it four wins from four starts when victorious in Sunday’s G3 Prix du Prince d’Orange at ParisLongchamp.

He looks a very exciting prospect.

Ombudsman was impressive on good ground in the Listed Prix Nureyev at Deauville last month.

On Sunday he started 3-5 favourite and raced in the box seat behind the leader First Look and was gifted a clear run up the rail as that G1 Prix du Jockey Club runner-up drifted left passing the two-furlong marker. Green and errant for William Buick on the run to the line, the Gosdens’ upwardly mobile colt veered off a true line twice to interfere with the similarly progressive Henri-Francois Devin trainee Start Of Day close to home, but was allowed to keep the race after an inquiry. Start Of Day was half a length behind at the line.

Godolphin Managing Director for UK and Dubai Hugh Anderson said, “William said that Ombudsman is a very good horse who is a little bit green and perhaps that is what we saw in the final stages. I am really delighted and John and Thady have campaigned him superbly, with the win at Deauville and now here. The expectation is that he is going to be a very good four-year-old and he’s definitely coming back next year–I’m not sure about whether he will race again this year.”

Ombudsman is out of the Dansili mare Syndicate, a great-granddaughter of G1 Emirates Prix Du Moulin De Longchamp winner All At Sea. The latter is a half-sister to Twice Over’s granddam Quandary.

Twice Over’s lengthy list of high-class performers includes 2023 G1 SplashOut Cape Derby/G1 Daily News 2000 winner See It Again, a three-part brother to the Twice Over sired dual Durban July-winning legend Do It Again.

Recently gelded, See It Again is being aimed at a tilt at the R6 million G1 Betway Summer Cup.

Twice Over is also sire of Double Superlative, who won the Gr 1 Hollywoodbets Cape Guineas and the Gr 1 WSB Met.

Another South African-based sire whose family did well over the weekend was the Maine Chance Farms-based Querari.

His top class Stuart Williams-trained three-part brother Quinault captured the Listed Starman At Tally Ho Stud Garrowby Stakes at York.

In the process, the Gestut Fahrhof bred four-year-old made it a hat-trick of Listed wins. Past notable winners of the Garrowby Stakes included such G1 winners as Limato and Starman.

The classy gelding took his win tally into double figures when making all to land Sunday’s Listed feature.

Quinault scored seven times last season and arrived at the Knavesmire chasing a Listed-class hat-trick this term following August strikes at Chester and Newmarket. 

Marco Ghiani pushed 6-4 favourite Quinault into an early lead and worked his way across to grab the favoured stands rail, from where he controlled the race and kept on well enough to see off Purosangue and Oisin Murphy by a neck.

Williams could even set his sights on the top sprinters, adding: “Vadream finished fourth yesterday (in the Betfair Sprint Cup) and she was third behind us at Newmarket, beaten about the same distance, so there’s not a lot in it. But we’ve still got next year with him, he hasn’t got a lot of miles on the clock and he’s a big, strong horse.”

Winner of the Listed Liverpool Airport Easier, Faster, Friendlier Queensferry Stakes and Listed Jenningsbet Hopeful Stakes in his two previous outings, Quinault has now won ten times and he holds an entry for the G2 Betfred Park Stakes.

Like Querari, Quinault is a son of outstanding sire Oasis Dream and he is out of the Dansili mare Queimada, who is a half-sister to three group/graded stakes winners including Querari.

South Africa’s Leading Sire of 2YOs in 2018-2019, Querari has sired 43 stakes winners including retired sprint champion Rio Querari and last season’s G3 World Pool Gold Cup winner Master Redoute.

Oasis Dream also features in another European horse with South African ties. The best runner to date of Expert Eye, who stands at SA’s newest stud farm, Paardeberg Stud, is the Tom Clover-trained Witness Stand, who is out of an Oasis Dream mare. This three-year-old gelding won a handicap over seven furlongs at Goodwood by three lengths in early August, earning over £30,000, and at the end of August went close over the same course and distance off a 105 official rating. He has won two from ten starts and ended his two-year-old career with a runner up finish in the Gr 3 Horris Hill Stakes over seven furlongs on the Newmarket Rowley Mile course.